The present invention relates to a seawall for a body of water, extends along, and retainingly and protectively bears against a bounding shore with the seawall at its top, extending above the ground level and at its bottom, retainingly projected and anchored down into the ground, below the water bottom.
Heretofore seawalls have been constructed of steel, cement and wood. The steel and cement systems have long life and are expensive. Both require expensive heavy equipment for installation, and limited numbers of companies have such equipment for installation. The wood system for shore protection can be handled by the property owner or can be sub-contracted to people with specialized equipment. Wood systems as installed today are by those with limited budgets. The life expectancy of wood is about one-half that of steel and repairs are usually made in a haphazard manner until replacement is necessary. Often, replacement of existing wood systems includes the use of steel. Specialized heavy equipment is available for installing a new steel seawall and at the same time remove the old wood seawall.
Normal installation at existing water edges includes shallow water. Usually three feet of dredging is allowed at the front of the seawall. Government policies are very rigid about going into waterways resulting in majority of bulkheads being assembled in shallow water. Steel bulkheads must be installed with heavy construction equipment. Some installations are constructed off of large barges. Some heavy duty equipment is used in residential yard area. This use of heavy equipment places the installation of bulkheads in the hands of a few specialized installers with a large overhead and heavy equipment. This offers potential damage to septic fields with equipment operated over the fields. In some cases, equipment large enough to install bulkheads of steel or wood have not reached the site because of bridges on canals or adjoining properties being too close to allow passage of equipment. This results in small equipment being used for the improper installation of such bulkheads.
The appearance of steel is not always acceptable and painting is a problem. Steel bulkheads should be painted during low water which occurs during cold winter months. Normally it is too cold to paint. Cement bulkheads, similar to steel bulkheads, are expensive and require the use of special heavy installation equipment.